How that big No. 42 on those pristine white helmets relates to the much larger picture of this Penn State team, this season and the last year.

People asked my opinion as if they werenít quite sure of theirs:

Was putting Mike Mautiís number on the side of those helmets too much on Saturday?

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Over the top?

And my first reaction was that it was.

This wasnít a small sticker on the back of the helmet. Or something stitched onto the jersey shoulder or marked on their gloves.

This was a big ď42Ē on helmets that havenít had a number of any kind on them in nearly 40 years.

Because everybody already knew Mike Mautiís story. His excellence on the field and his place on the team and how he was robbed of his final game because of yet another knee injury.

But changing the look of a uniform for a player missing a game with a bad knee?

This isnít a fallen coach. This isnít for someone seriously ill. This isnít about someone inducted into the hall of fame or who led some improbable national title run.

Former linebacker Jack Ham is in both the college and pro football halls of fame, and he got nothing more than a quick stadium announcement and some applause Saturday.

Even Mauti understood the unusual reach of his teammatesí and coachesí honor.

ďYou know, Iím not dead,Ē he deadpanned in the postgame interview room.

Then he smiled. He spoke in quiet tones. He was humbled by it all.

At the same time, I thought of how Penn State once had a Heisman Trophy winner and players who became doctors and others who did missionary work and one who was nearly paralyzed only to miraculously recover and walk again and become a lawyer.

Then thereís just the strangeness of the past year. Not about right and wrong and blame, just the surreal.

While they ripped down his statue and almost seem afraid to even mention the name of their once-legendary head coach, one of his players was honored like no one before.

So the helmet did seem awkward on Saturday with so many other things to soak in and even celebrate.

But then I looked around, and I listened to others.

And I finally understood:Just because the gesture pushed the moment and almost seemed too big, doesnít mean it was wrong.

Everything at Penn State in the past year was so much bigger than ever before, so dramatic in the good and the bad.

So different than the way things used to be done.

Gerald Hodges wearing Mautiís No. 42 jersey? That was a nice touch. That was safe.

The helmets said more.

ďIn some ways, we needed (that) out on that field,Ē said senior quarterback Matt McGloin.

* * *

No, to understand the move was to remember Mauti eulogizing Joe Paterno at his memorial service.

It was how he and a few others spent a week with little sleep after the NCAA sanctions tore through the program in July, constantly calling and texting teammates and their families, constantly meeting with his new coaches ó all in a remarkable behind-the-scenes effort to keep the Lions together.

It was the way he spoke his mind on that summer video announcing his teamís solidarity.

And how he did the same at those Big Ten meetings, never shrinking in the moment.

How crucial was he?

Two of his teammates, one of them an emerging star he wouldnít name, were on their way to check out Michigan State immediately after the sanctions hit.

Mauti called them and got them to turn the car around and never look back.

Because just as this team means so much more than eight wins and four losses, this player canít be judged by a mere 95 tackles and three interceptions over three months.

He seized an opportunity to make a grand impact better than most ever could.

So maybe Mike Mauti really is more critical to this historic program than we even realized.

ďHeís the reason why we were playing. Heís the reason why that team was there,Ē running back and good friend Mike Zordich said after the victory against Wisconsin. ďHe got everybody together. Heís a leader, and thatís an understatement.

ďHe just means more to this place, and to this team, than you can put into words.Ē

And, if you really think about it, that is more important than a Heisman Trophy or any hall of fame.

Certainly, itís worth changing even the most iconic uniform for just a day.